Hottentot

[ hot-n-tot ]

/ ˈhɒt nˌtɒt /

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noun

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of Hottentot

1670–80; <Afrikaans; origin uncertain

OTHER WORDS FROM Hottentot

Hot·ten·tot·ic, adjective

Words nearby Hottentot

hot switch, hotsy-totsy, hot take, hot tear, hot-tempered, Hottentot, Hottentot fig, Hottentot's bread, hotter, hot ticket, hottie

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Hottentot in a sentence

Some scorpions, birds, fishes and flowers are known by the label Hottentot.
Racism lurks in many plant and animal names. That’s now changing.|Jaime Chambers|October 22, 2021|Science News For Students
Some scorpions, birds, fishes and flowers are known by the label Hottentot, a term of abuse for Indigenous Khoikhoi people in southern Africa.
Racism lurks in names given to plants and animals. That’s starting to change|Jaime Chambers|August 25, 2021|Science News
Displays of malformations were obviously often strikingly offensive, none more so than the “Hottentot Venus.”
We’re All Carnies Now: Why We Can’t Quit the Circus|Anthony Paletta|November 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She will have to decide now if she will become a Hottentot Venus or an ethnic version of a white ho.
What Was Venus Thinking?|Stanley Crouch|May 29, 2010|DAILY BEAST

Yet its cranial capacity is far above that of the highest apes, and is assimilated with that of Hottentot and Polynesian skulls.
Man And His Ancestor|Charles Morris
Finally, the Hottentot mission was transferred to Bethelsdorp, where steady progress was made.
Robert Moffat|David J. Deane
The face nearly resembled that of a Hottentot, but the body was covered all over with a sort of grey wool.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume IX (of 10)|Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
Then the Hottentot saw his chance, and leaving his hiding place he ran like lightning to his home, which was only a mile distant.
The Animal Story Book|Various
To threaten a disobedient servant with the jambok—be he Hottentot, Fingo, or Caffre—is to bring him back to kneeling obeisance.
The Vee-Boers|Mayne Reid

British Dictionary definitions for Hottentot

Hottentot

/ (ˈhɒtənˌtɒt) /

noun offensive

plural -tot or -tots a former name for Khoikhoi (def. 1)

any of the languages of this people, belonging to the Khoisan family

Word Origin for Hottentot

C17: from Afrikaans, of uncertain origin

usage for Hottentot

When referring to the people the accepted word nowadays is Khoikhoi . Hottentot continues to be used for some animal and plant names, as in Hottentot fig

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012